Notes on Using GURPS Bio-Tech (4e) in TS (part 1: TL Overview)

[Phil Masters]

I've decided to go through the new edition of GURPS Bio-Tech, looking at how it fits with Transhuman Space and what questions it raises about canon and rules treatments. This will involve a series of posts. Everything that follows is just my opinion, and is wide open to debate.

OVERVIEW

The Tech Level

Officially, in the categories used in GURPS 4th edition, the Transhuman Space setting is TL10 with a bit of TL11 biotechnology, and a look through this book supports that view. In fact, the TL11 stuff is pretty marginal; most things in the setting seem fit within TL10. The exceptions would be a few explicitly experimental or bleeding-edge items, and maybe a few features built into mainstream production bioroids - and it's going to be easier to install radical tweaks in them than in other biological entities, so arguably many of those features might drop a TL for this purpose anyway.

However, there's enough pretty overtly TL11 stuff around that the setting can be considered to be advancing into that TL for these purposes. What I would suggest, in game-mechanical terms, is that characters who have access to the most advanced Fifth Wave biotech labs and early-release products should be able to buy +1 TL with a -60% limitation, "Early-Model Biotech Only", for a whole 2 points. This permits them to buy biotech-related skills at TL11, and also to acquire some TL11 biotech products for the usual double cost (for them being at +1 TL). However, whether or not they can get hold of a given TL11 item at any given time will depend on the precise level of development in the setting (as the GM sees it), and the traditional GM's Iron Whim. In general, this advantage will be limited to postgraduate research scientists and agents of major governments and corporations; it might be tied up with Patrons, Contacts, Security Clearance, Duties, and so on.

I wouldn't usually require this advantage for a character who starts play with some TL11 biomod installed, or for bioroids who were created using TL11 techniques - unless they also had access to more bleeding-edge training and products. That's just a character feature. Access to just a single bit of TL11 tech might represent a -80% limitation on the advantage (or a Perk - same thing, in practice).

More to follow...